1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains to a multiple flavor post-mix beverage dispensing head for mixing any one of a plurality of different flavored liquid beverage concentrates with a common diluent.
2. The Prior Art
There are hundreds of different structures for dispensing heads for single flavor post-mix dispensing heads. These heads may mix the concentrate with diluent water either within the head as is preferred, or merely discharge the concentrate and diluent into a cup. These single flavor heads have typically discharged concentrate in the center of the head, and discharged diluent water around the concentrate outlet in some type of concentric co-axial arrangement. The single flavor heads have never provided structure for multiple and different flavored concentrates, and the problem of cleaning the previously selected concentrate from the head so there will be no carryover into a subsequently dispensed concentrate has not been addressed.
The multiple flavor dispensing heads have been developed for pre-mix or post-mix in both fixed and movable types. Pre-mix beverage is a complete beverage that has been mixed at a bottling factory and is supplied in large vessels to the site of dispensing; post-mix beverages by contrast, are mixed together as separate flows of water and concentrate are combined together and discharged into a cup. A fixed dispensing head is rigidly fastened to some type of dispensing machine and is not movable, whereas a movable head is on the end of a length of hose and can be hand held and moved along above a counter to fill up a line of glasses without the glasses having to be moved.
A typical fixed multiple flavor pre-mix head will either have a separate outlet for each flavor or a common funnel with a single outlet into which any of the flavors can be discharged. Typical movable pre-mix heads have separate outlets for each flavor. Structure is not provided for mixing.
Typical fixed multiple flavor post-mix heads have been quite tall, have done only a so-so job of mixing water and concentrate, and have been useable only at a single flow rate. The movable multiple flavor post-mix heads have been small and useable only at a single flow rate. These heads have typically been either of the following constructions: a group of parallel open ended plastic tubes bound together and leading into a funnel, or a plastic block having a peripheral annular water outlet and a plurality of concentrate outlets either within or outside of the water outlet, and some type of funnel spout to bring the flows together. These heads have been for single flow rates, have dripped after dispensing, have foamed, and effected excessive loss of carbonation. Correct mixing has always been a problem and there are three aspects to correct mixing; specifically, residue, carryover, and Brix stratification. The residue problem is concentrate of one flavor being left in the head and being washed out during the subsequent dispensing of the next drink which may be a different flavor. Carryover is similar but may also entail suction of one or more spurious concentrates with the desired beverage, or the concentrate being dispensed may be forced up into a different flavored concentrate outlet by back pressure or reverse flow in the mixing head. Brix stratification is exemplified by a glass of beverage having mostly concentrate in the bottom and mostly water in the top. The concentrate has a much higher density than diluent water, and if insufficient mixing takes place in the head, the concentrate settles to the bottom of the glass and the flavor of the beverage is very poor; specifically, if a straw is used, the first part of the drink will be rich and the last part will be mostly water.